Customer Reviews

Barking! (A Grace Smith Investigation)

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I loved the laughs from the situations and the British jargon.
Grace Smith is an ex-policewoman who is sassy and crass, but
has a bit of a conscience. The plot is interesting, although
the story does drag a little in the middle. Over all Liz Evans
does a great job. How can you not like a story that starts with
the main character accidentally knocking out her future client
with a cow bone while trying to catch a lost dog. He then hires
her to find out if he ever murdered someone in a past life.
When you need a break from the serious British writers try this
series. Its fun!!

The Grace Smith mystery series is definitely one worth reading. I almost missed out on this author because I thought the first two books ("Who Killed Marilyn Monroe?" and "JFK is Missing")had silly titles. "Barking" is the 4th book in the series, and definitely the best by far.

The book is set in England and written in the first person. One of the best qualities is the humor. I wouldn't necessarily liken the character of Grace Smith to Stephanie Plum, since I found the humor in the only Stephanie Plum book I read to be too over-the-top.

Fans of British mysteries would probably also enjoy the Anna Lee series by Liza Cody (now out of print but available as second-hand or from the library) and the Kate Brannigan series by V.L. McDermid (available at Amazon).

This series is hilarious. Stephanie Plum has her family to help keep the laughs coming. Grace Smith has only herself. She doesn't need anyone else. This series will keep you laughing. You'll love Grace, trust me.

The book arrived in great shape and ealier than I expected. Was very pleased with the order and would definately order from them again! Hard to find this Author because she is from England so thankyou so much for getting it to me!

Despite this being the fourth book in a detective series, it suffered from none of the usual problems of picking up a series in the middle. The characters were fully constructed and likable and there wasn't that persistent, nagging feeling that something was missing. I really enjoyed it! It definitely worked as a standalone mystery, though I will definitely be keeping an eye out for the rest of the series. There was a moment or two when I really hated it... but in the end, I was quite satisfied. The mystery unfolded unpredictably. Very good!

She writes excellent mysteries with a great protagonist/detective (Grace Smith), and the books are, quite frankly, better plotted than Evanovitch but just about as funny. Maybe Evanovitch does better on the romance, but personally, I prefer Evans, who places more emphasis on the mystery.

Grace Smith is an ex-police officer who was forced to resign following an appearance of misconduct. She's now working in a seaside town in England as a private investigator, although her work includes such things as looking for lost dogs. That's how this book begins, with her trying to recapture a lost bull dog mix for a junk yard owner who hires Grace every time the dog takes off. In the course of trying to get the dog back, Grace stumbles onto a man (hits him with a cow bone, actually) who ends up hiring her. He wants her to investigate some past life regression tapes, because he fears he may have killed someone -- in a past life? Grace fears more for the present, and doesn't entirely know if he's being honest with her -- she doesn't believe in the supernatural. But money is money...and it's better than looking for lost dogs. Under that theory, she also agrees to dogsit for the bull dog for a couple of days (right), and ends up having to haul the dog around with her -- which is where much of the humor comes in.

I look forward to reading more of the series. If you haven't read any yet, you're in for a treat. This mystery was very well plotted and I did not guess -- or even consider -- the ending.